Covered stadiums are becoming more common because they provide a controlled environment for outdoor sports and extend the season for such activities. However, an indoor atmosphere is a drawback when the weather is fine because it detracts from the natural environment. To obtain the best of both worlds retractable roofs have been devised to expose the interior of the stadium. Such roofs have been found expensive to construct and/or incomplete in achieving their purpose of approximating complete exposure of the interior. In one type of structure a rectangular roof slides away as a unitary structure (Montreal, Canada) while in another type a round roof is opened in the manner of a camera lens shutter. The shutter roof leaves an overhanging arch while the unitary sliding roof requires an additional area of land equal to the area of land required for the stadium proper.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a stadium having a retractable roof of relatively simple construction giving maximum exposure of the interior.